FRANCE: Remy sales up despite currency impact

French wines and spirits group Rémy Cointreau said today its nine-month consolidated turnover had reached €711.6m, representing organic growth of 5% over the first nine months of last financial year.

This growth was 1.2% on published data, despite the change in the dollar. All divisions reported growth, with 9.8% accelerated sales growth in December alone, the group said. The US and China continued to grow strongly.

In Cognac, an increase in Rémy Martin sales was mainly due to the strong growth in superior qualities (XO and other QSS). The US and Asia, particularly China, continued their strong performance.

In liqueurs Remy said that the worldwide launch of the "be cointreauversial" campaign accompanied the acceleration in Cointreau sales from the start of the year, particularly in the US, the brand's leading market. Bols liqueurs achieved good growth with the rollout of its new range.

There was apparently a solid performance by Bols Vodka in the premium vodka market in Poland with growth of 9.9%, and continued sustained development by Metaxa in Eastern Europe (Poland and Hungary). The US remained very buoyant, with increased sales of Mount Gay Rum, while Europe remained sluggish, a statement said.

Champagne registered a modest 2.6% sales increase, although Remy said this should not mask a genuine improvement in the product mix.

"Sales of Piper-Heidsieck and Charles Heidsieck remained strong, with the notable exception of France. The relative weight of the other brands continues to represent a lower proportion of sales," the statement said.

There was a 10.4% organic growth in partner brands, mainly arising from the performance of the Scotch whiskies (The Famous Grouse and The Macallan) in the US.

Remy said the overall figures were in line with the group's value strategy, confirming an objective of double-digit growth in operating profit for the full year.

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